


273 seconds

by alchemise



Category: 4'33" - John Cage (Song)
Genre: Gen, Horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-19
Updated: 2019-12-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:47:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21856297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alchemise/pseuds/alchemise
Summary: The first two hundred and seventy-three seconds felt like an eternity.
Comments: 14
Kudos: 26
Collections: Yuletide Madness 2019





	273 seconds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Gammarad](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gammarad/gifts).



The first two hundred and seventy-three seconds felt like an eternity. No one knew what was happening, just that sound—all sound—stopped working. No, more than stopped: it was like sound had been erased. The whole world became silent. Those seconds seemed to take forever, with no end in sight.

Then it was over, and sound returned. It was called an act of god, a conspiracy of science and government, a natural or man-made disaster. But at least it was over, and the world was right again.

The next time the two hundred and seventy-three seconds of silence occurred, a new reality set in behind people's eyes. That reality stank of fear, that this might become their new normal.

The silence came unpredictably now, with no pattern anyone could discern, only more and more frequently. It seemed to come when it _liked to_ , and a certain intelligent malevolence was now associated with its arrival. Those with ill intentions realized the implications immediately: over four minutes of no cries for help and no response from authorities. They targeted those unused to going unheard, helpless behind their silent alarm systems. 

There wasn't only fear, however. For some, it brought calm—a few moments respite, a pause in whatever chaos churned in one's life. Dogs learned not to bark. Meetings stopped, sermons quieted, musicians took a break, angry rantings were muted, and speeches to few or many just rested for a while. Or if they didn't, then they continued unacknowledged. People learned to wait, for the sound to return, but with an increasing resignation that one day the two hundred and seventy-three seconds wouldn't end.


End file.
